Хайкинг или пешеходный туризм в Пиренеях Каталонии: основные маршруты

Хайкинг или пешеходный туризм в Пиренеях Каталонии: основные маршруты

Хайкинг – это спортивное развлечение, которая в Каталонии имеет давнюю традицию и позволяет простым и приятным образом узнать историю, природные и культурные богатства территории. От Пиренеев до Средиземного моря природное и архитектурное богатство этой земли находится в пределах досягаемости для всех путешественников.

Ландшафт Каталонии глубоко меняется в течение сезонов и предлагает большое разнообразие, которое происходит от самых высоких пиков Пиренеев до самых скрытых бухт Средиземного моря, проходящих через внутренние равнины или характерных пейзажей Дельты Эбра и Terres de Lleida.

Более 5000 км трасс

Различные типы трасс, междугородние – Gran Recorregut GR, короткие дистанции – Petit Recorregut PR и локальные маршруты – докладчики Locals SL, для любых видов спорта. В настоящее время каталонская сеть имеет более 5000 км отмеченных дальних маршрутов и широкий выбор местных маршрутов на короткие расстояния, которые делают ее привилегированным местом для пеших прогулок.

Большинство троп прослеживались и отмечались на протяжении веков пастухами, солдатами и торговцами, а в последние десятилетия вновь открывались с туристической точки зрения. Эти пути пересекают 12 природных парков и 144 охраняемых природных района, с очень разными ландшафтными и биологическими особенностями, а также с огромными культурными и художественными интересами.

Другой маршрут, который позволяет вам внимательно ознакомиться с природой Западных Пиренеев, – это Порта дель Сел, вы сможете подняться на Пик д’Эстэтс, самую высокую вершину в Каталонии.

Валле-ди-Рибес и Страда-деи-Тре-Монти

В восточной части каталонских Пиренеев и недалеко от Коста-Брава можно совершать различные виды экскурсий в естественной обстановке природной красоты. Таким образом, вы можете исследовать Пиренеи региона Жирона или полюбоваться романским искусством в долине Рибес, открывая необыкновенное архитектурное и художественное наследие.

Даже менее известные внутренние районы имеют прекрасные места, в частности, массивы Монтеньи, теплицу Монтсант и горы Прадес. Маршрут, называемый Страда-деи-Тре Монти, пересекает внутреннюю часть побережья и соединяет три природных парка в 106 километрах, разделенных на шесть этапов.

Природные парки Коста

Если вы предпочитаете прогуляться по морю, посетите прибрежные природные парки, такие как Кап-де-Креус. Вместо этого древние проходы вокруг приморских курортов, следуют неровностям побережья и позволяют вам добраться до изолированных бухт.

В орнитологических заповедниках каталонских болот – природный парк Дельты Эбре, где еще есть дикие пляжи, и Природный парк Айгуамолс де л’Эмпорда – можно сочетать удовольствие от прогулки с наблюдением перелетных птиц.

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Eating insects: absurd or the future?

Eating caterpillars or insects in front of a camera is a demonstration of how nutritious these things can be, but the modern, ordinary person is disgusted even to watch. In some eastern countries, such foods are a common thing; grasshoppers fried in sugar, different types of worms and other “goodies” found in Europe are still surprising to most. This is my post about.

But, here in the Netherlands, there are already companies that have specialized in farming insects for food for 8 years. However, they do not feed people with these crickets or worms, but extract protein from them and use them as bio-additives in other dishes. The benefit of this kind of food is a decrease in the number of farm animals, like cows, in the country, polluting the soil and atmosphere with methane.

Modern biology has had a lot of success in squeezing out insect oil. This fat is yellow and rich in omega-3 acids. With animal meat, man does not get them. Insect oil is added to ice cream or cream that is on cakes and pastries. It is not necessary to even add flavors to the fat from the lionfish, as it smells like fruit. These insects do not feast on corpses but on different types of flowers.

Cockroaches are really disgusting not only in appearance but also in their smell, like the oil they produce. This oil is only suitable for car lubricants. But the fat from the flour worm is lighter than all other oils from insects. It is odorless and is suitable for bio-additives that have been actively used in the bio-industry for a long time.

In Africa and Oceania, large white worms that live under the bark of trees are commonly eaten as a source of protein.

In Thailand, people love eating locusts; in China, earthworms are cooked in soups. Scientists argue that we should all soon begin to eat more insects. Squeamish people will have to overcome this feeling. It is proven that the protein from insects is much better and absorbed faster than that from animal meat. If it is good to cook dishes from these crawling and flying creatures, they will be tasty and nutritious. Farming insects compared to animals is easier if the climate allows it. It is easier to make a dish that can be eaten from a pile of bees or beetles than slaughtering a pig or a cow, butchering them and then boiling, smoking or frying the meat.

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Beware of nitrates in food!

Beware of nitrates in food!

Imagine a summer morning in a picturesque village. You wake up from the gentle touch of the sun’s rays, the ceremonial crowing of the neighbor’s rooster welcomes you, and your legs are already rushing out of the house towards a new day …

How great it all is! The garden in the backyard is full of bright red cherries, and the leaves of the lettuces and parsley are green … This is a vitamin paradise!

This is what we have in our minds, but, unfortunately, we are led to disappointment. The culprit? Tiny molecules of nitrates … This is my post today.

What are nitrates?

Nitrates are compounds (salts) of metals which contain a residue of nitric acid (HNO3). In solutions, nitrates are, as a rule, represented by negatively charged particles — nitrate anions (NO3–), which contain three oxygen atoms and one nitrogen atom.

It is nitrates that are the main form in which mineral nitrogen is absorbed by plants from the soil. After absorption, nitrates are included in reduction reactions, the purpose of which is to obtain ammonium ions (NH4 +). A simplified diagram of this process is as follows:

NO3- → NO2- → NH4 +

Why precisely ammonium? It’s simple. Recall that proteins, one of the most important classes of organic compounds, are composed of amino acids. Amino acids, in turn, are nitrogen-containing molecules. To build an amino acid and, accordingly, protein, the body needs nitrogen. It so happens that nitrates containing nitrogen cannot be involved in the synthesis of amino acids, but ammonium can. So the plant has to first absorb the nitrates and then turn them into ammonium. Alas, this transformation is not an instantaneous matter; therefore, nitrates can accumulate in the plant’s body, and we, in turn, eat them.

Which are the dangerous nitrates?

Approximately 70% of all nitrates enter the human body from food composed of plants (fresh or canned vegetables) and about 20% with water (especially water rich in nitrates from wells; deep-well drilled water contains much fewer nitrates). The remaining 10% of nitrates a person receives is from animal products and pharmacological preparations. The permissible daily intake of nitrates for a person is set at 5 mg per 1 kg of body weight.

Once in the human body, nitrates are converted into nitrites – particularly dangerous anions that oxidize hemoglobin iron. Oxidized hemoglobin (methemoglobin) is unable to transport oxygen. As a result, oxygen deficiency of tissues and organs (hypoxia) develops and in particular, pernicious hypoxic state for cells of the nervous tissue and heart muscle. The accumulation of 20% methemoglobin in the blood is dangerous to our life. A prolonged continuous flow of nitrates into the human body can cause destructive changes in the heart, kidney damage, and an increase in the thyroid gland can be observed (nitrates reduce iodine). Nitrates contribute to the development of pathogenic intestinal microflora, as a result of which intoxication states develop. Particularly dangerous is the conversion of nitrates and nitrites to nitroso compounds, which are characterized by a strong hepatotoxic and carcinogenic effect and can provoke the development of cancer of the liver, mammary glands, stomach and even leukemia.

How to live with them?

After the information above, it is somehow even scary to eat any products that are plant-based. But still, plants remain the most important suppliers of vitamins, minerals and bioflavonoids, so excluding them from our daily diet is very unwise. What then should we do?

It should be noted that plants, according to the localization of the nitrate reduction reaction, are divided into three main groups. Representatives of the first group of the process of nitrate recovery almost completely takes place in the root system, and ammonium or ready-made amino acids are transported to the part above the ground. These plants are the safest to eat. These include peas, blueberries and some other species. The second group is the complete opposite of the first: they accumulate and restore nitrates in the aboveground part, and ammonium and amino acids (sugar beet) are transported to the roots. Finally, the third group is plants in which the reduction of nitrates occurs equally in both the roots and the leaves. These include cereals and vegetables.

It is also important to note that plants, depending on the species, accumulate nitrates in different quantities. In this case, there is also a three-level classification. Representatives of the first group are species with a high content of nitrates (up to 5 g per kg of plant mass). These include lettuce, cabbage, beets, dill, onion leaves, cantaloupe and watermelon. The second group accumulates nitrates in medium quantities – up to 300-500 mg / kg. This group includes horseradish, cucumbers, carrots, cauliflower, and zucchini. The third group is our favorite because these vegetables accumulate nitrates in minimal quantities (up to 100 mg / kg). They include peas, sorrel, potatoes, tomatoes, and fruit.

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Curative effects of apples

Curative effects of apples

In the last decade, many studies have found a wealth of positive effects that apples have on human health. Apples are not delicious but they are also a great fruit to eat for your health. Adding apples to your daily diet is a very simple way to combat oxidative stress, inflammation, diabetes, heart disease, asthma, Alzheimer’s disease and cancer. This is what my post about today.

1. Antibacterial activity

Apples can have a very strong antibacterial impact against gram-positive bacteria, such as staphylococcus, epidermis, subtilis bacilli and gram-negative bacteria, and proteu myrabilis. In addition to the apples themselves, apple tree bark also has antibacterial and antimicrobial properties. It was found that both the fetus itself and the cortex inhibit the activity of various bacteria and thus, prevent the occurrence of diseases caused by bacteria and microbes. This property of apples and the tree bark may be associated with an abundance of polyphenols and flavonoids.

2. Diarrhea and dysentery

Apples are effective against diarrhea. Apples reduce stool wateriness and its frequency. Thus, apples can be used as an effective tool in the treatment of diarrhea and dysentery. In addition, apples are also useful in the treatment of hemorrhoids, flatulence and vomiting.

3. Diseases of the bronchi

Apples have a bronchodilar effect, that is, they reduce resistance to the breathing process and expand the bronchi and bronchioles. This effect helps in easing breathing and reduces the overall stress caused by lack of air.

A recent study showed similar effects when using apple extracts with an anti-asthma drug. The effect caused by the apples is explained by the presence of flavonoids, polyphenols, glycosides, saponins, tannins and alkaloids. Thus, it can be said that apples are just as effective as the medicines used in the treatment of asthma, so people with asthma should eat them.

4. Liver damage

Carbon tetrachloride is a harmful substance that causes damage to the liver. It produces a lot of free radicals and increases stress due to oxidative stress, which, in turn, causes liver damage.

Studies have shown that apple pulp helps reduce the production of free radicals and reduces overall oxidative stress. This beneficial effect of apples is due to their high antioxidant potential. Antioxidants present in this fruit, remove free radicals and reduce lipid peroxidation (a process in which free radicals cause lipid degradation and, therefore, cause damage).

Apples improve liver function and reduce the level of liver enzymes, which usually increase with liver damage. In addition, apples also showed an increase in antioxidant enzymes and an improvement in the overall condition of the liver cells.

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Why does the body need food with a balanced vitamin D content?

Why does the body need food with a balanced vitamin D content?

A person needs a whole range of complex vitamins and microelements for the normal functioning of the body, but some of them play a special role in our body’s vital activity.

Calcium is needed for bones and teeth, without it, the body will not get stronger. In addition, it takes part in the muscles, immune and nervous systems, by contributing to blood clotting. Phosphorus is also necessary for bones and teeth, and for muscles, it participates in the reproduction and division of cells, reduces the likelihood of sand and kidney stones, and is involved in all bodily processes. But the human body is not able to absorb calcium and phosphorus without vitamin D. This is what my post is about today.

Due to a lack of vitamin D, bones become weak, immunity goes down, and a variety of diseases can develop, including cardiovascular and cancerous ones. Its deficiency leads to health problems ending in death.

In many countries, the shortage is compensated by special treatment with ultraviolet rays of some products: milk, mushrooms, cottage cheese, kefir. This allows you to exclude some health problems among the population. Countries are particularly at risk where, due to climatic conditions, there is a clear lack of sun.

It is very important at an early age to give children enough Vitamin D, otherwise, in the first months of life, rickets can begin to develop, leading to serious complications. In adulthood, a person needs 600 IU per day of vitamin D, children need 400 IU, and older people up to 800 IU.

It is possible to provide the body with this substance in several ways: by means of direct exposure of the skin to ultraviolet rays, by taking multivitamin complexes, and also by adjusting the diet.

To saturate the body with vitamin D, you need to be in the open sun for about an hour a week, without using protective agents. Ultraviolet rays, reaching the open skin, help a person to synthesize this substance.

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